Neuroscience

Point of View: An annotated introductory reading list for neurodiversity

Christ Church College, University of Oxford, United Kingdom
Mind, Brain, and Behavior Research Center (CIMCYC) and the Department of Behavioral Sciences Methodology, University of Granada, Spain
CNRS, France
University of Maryland, Baltimore County, United States
Østfold University College, Norway
Department of Industrial Engineering & Innovation Sciences, Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands
Poznan University of Business and Economic, Poland
AGHAM Advocates of Science and Technology for the People, Philippines
ULiège Library and the Center of Semiotic and Rhetoric, University of Liege, Belgium
Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Queen's University Belfast, United Kingdom
Department of Philosophy, Macquarie University, Australia
Department of Psychology, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
Kapteyn Astronomical Institute, University of Groningen, Netherlands
Department of Interdisciplinary Social Science, University of Utrecht, Netherlands
Centre for Social and Early Emotional Development and School of Psychology, Deakin University, Australia
Ask Me, I'm an AAC user, United States
School of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece
Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Arts, North Macedonia
Department of Neurology, University Hospital Essen, Germany
Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, Norway
University of Birmingham, United Kingdom
University of Leicester, United Kingdom
University of Rhode Island, United States

Dec 4, 2024

https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.102467

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1 table and 1 additional file

Tables

Table 1

Definitions of key terms.

For further context, discussion and examples of these terms, see Dwyer, 2022 and Walker, 2021.

Term	Definition	Further notes
Neurodiversity as a paradigm or framework	A conceptual framework for understanding disability that emphasizes the diversity of neurocognitive, social, behavioural experiences and characteristics.	The neurodiversity paradigm challenges deficit-based views of disability by promoting the idea that neurocognitive differences are part of natural human variation, not inherently problematic (Pellicano and den Houting, 2022; Dwyer, 2022).
Neurodiversity as a research field	A broad area of research that encompasses various topics related to neurodiversity, such as investigating the psychological and social aspects of neurodiversity.	The neurodiversity research field can include research on neurodivergent traits across the lifespan, neurodiversity-informed education and workplace practices, among others. For more about neurodiversity approaches for researchers, see Dwyer, 2022.
Neurodiversity as a movement	A social and political movement that advocates for the acceptance and inclusion of individuals with neurodivergent differences.	The neurodiversity movement seeks to shift public perceptions of neurodivergent people away from seeing them as "disordered" and toward embracing them as part of the diversity of human experiences (Dwyer, 2022).
Neurodiverse people	A group is considered neurodiverse if its members differ between each other in terms of their neurocognitive functioning.	A neurodiverse group of people can include a mix of individuals who are neurodivergent and individuals who are neurotypical (Walker, 2021).
Neurodivergent people	Individuals whose neurocognitive functioning diverges from the dominant societal standards of "typical" or "average" functioning. Neurodivergent or neurodivergence may be abbreviated as ND.	Neurodivergent people are those whose experiences diverge from what is considered neurologically typical. Asasumasu coined this term with the intention of covering all forms of divergence, including autism, ADHD, epilepsy, cluster headaches, among others (Asasumasu, 2015)
Neurotype	A term used to describe a particular common pattern of neurocognitive functioning.	Examples of some named neurotypes include autism, ADHD, dyslexia. See Bottema-Beutel et al., 2021 for more on avoiding ableist language.